Yahoo Finance My first boss: Reverend Richard Coles
The people who helped shape business leaders
Richard Coles, 61, is a broadcaster and best-selling author. He is a former member of 80s band The Communards and retired as a vicar in 2022.
I’ve never really had a proper job but my first boss in a formal sense was my training incumbent when I was first ordained. Reverend Robin Whitehead was vicar of Boston in Lincolnshire, showed me the ropes and introduced me to the comedy and tragedy of being a vicar in the Church of England.
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I was at theological college in Yorkshire and at ‘Fathers' Day’, prospective training incumbents came along to meet their prospective curates. Robin was responsible for putting me into a parish and he thought I was a good fit for Boston.
It’s almost like dating in a funny sort of way. You turn up, look at each other and wonder if you will get on. It was immediately obvious that we would and he was simply a lovely man. He was unfailingly supportive, kind, funny and gave me what I needed to learn. From the nuts and bolts of how to fill in a wedding register to what deanery synod is and other procedural techniques. Mostly, it was about how to deal with people: how and when to be clear, silent and all those judgement calls.
There were some useful hacks he also taught me at Boston. St Botolph's is a big church and there were lots of carol services. We would say a bidding prayer and after Hark! The Herald Angels Sing we would appear again and give a blessing. One or two of these were fine but, after 25, Robin worked out a way where we could sit in our stalls and sneak out to the vicarage where there was a buzzer. The verger would call us back after a glass or two of wine.
Robin is famous for being the most handsome vicar in the Church of England. He was so good looking, and still is, and people rather threw themselves at him. As a leader, he was great under pressure, knew when he needed to be firm and dealt with people well. A lot of what I learned in training isn’t what they think they are telling you but simply who they are.
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He ran a team with two clergy, while there were vergers, shop managers and stonemasons on staff. He had a civic role and whenever there was an issue in the town, people would come to seek his views.
In Boston, there were a huge number of agricultural labourers from the EU which created some tension at the time. He had to address those problems which he did so with judgement and patience and that was important for me to see firsthand.
He was deeply devoted to dogs which was important. The only time I remember feeling anything tricky about him was in one weekly meeting when his dog ate my birthday cake with one snatch. We worked through that one.
A humble and thoughtful person, he mucked in and didn’t lead in a remote or distant way. He encouraged me not to have unrealistic expectations about what it’s like to work for a big institution.
What I would look for in a leader would be somebody who knew the job inside out, was experienced and wouldn’t ask you to do impossible things. Someone who was fair, who would think originally and not be bound to rules and conventions. I like high-performance leaders and someone really good at their job.
In my tradition, it was rather frowned upon if you became friends with your colleagues in a way, as it might cut across authority. I never thought that to be true in all the people I worked with. I hope I was friends to them too.
I like a leader who is better than me, who I can respect and learn from. In church business it can be tricky when you are running an organisation. Do you go at the speed of the fastest so you get to places sooner, or the speed of the slowest so everyone comes with you? I learned the temptation of the former but also the latter camp.
Another trait I like in a leader is someone who learns against their own particular characteristic. For example, someone who is naturally conservative who becomes quite radical, or someone who is timid and becomes bold. Sometimes situations demand that we go beyond what’s familiar and comfortable.
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This month I am visiting several UK independent bookshops, which are at a 10-year high. What’s interesting about that is that they reach parts that other organisations don’t reach. I often listen to podcasts and think, 'That’s what I want to listen to, that should be on broadcast media' which is chasing other things.
There are lots of people like me who are interested in being around others keen to learn about things, which the mainstream doesn’t provide for us quite as well. Independent bookshops can do that as they can tailor what they offer to their audience, readership and communities — and I really like that.
Richard Coles's book A Death in the Parish, published by W&N, is out now. He is also an ambassador for Independent Bookshop Week, which runs from 17-24 June, and will be touring the UK.
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